Hemoperfusion for detoxification of mercury. A model:treatment of severe mercury poisoning by encapsulated chelating spheres, Part I.

Polymercaptal microspheres of average size 0.8 mu were synthesized. They have very high affinity towards mercury compounds and do not interact with alkali or alkali earth metallic compounds, they can also easily bind mercury compounds which were already bound to albumin or cysteine. Polymercaptal spheres were encapsulated by agarose--a blood compatible polymer. The encapsulated spheres were used successfully by means of plasma perfusion for detoxification of organic and inorganic mercury compounds from poisoned plasma.